Best Post-GS9 Rap Crew

October 19, 2016

In the wake of Bobby Shmurda and his GS9 crew facing outrageously long prison sentences, Gloss Gang has fed Brooklyn’s appetite for fist-clenched street rap. Last year, this crew of kids from Crown Heights and Bed-Stuy started dropping thundering singles, including “She Only Love Me When It’s Lit” and “Feeling Good,” catching the ears of those dug deepest into New York rap’s trenches. But their latest track, “Gloss Day,” nods toward broader potential: The boys Swook and 700Stackz float tumbling Bone Thugs flows over a slow-rolling bassline and airy whistle. It doesn’t sound like anything else around, which bodes well for the young crew and makes them one to keep watching. Meanwhile, dig back in to their Money.Brower.Respect mixtape, named for the park they loiter in, and spot a Galt MacDermot sample that’s never been freaked quite the same.